Blind having relatively adjustable slats



Sept. 8, 1959 Filed June 16, 1958 FIG. 2

A. ALVAREZ 2,903,057

BLIND HAVING RELATIVELY ADJUSTABLE SLATS 5 Sheets-Sheet 1 FIG. I

2O 2 D-| INVENTOR ALFONSO ALVAREZ BY: ,//9

ATTORNEY p 8, 1959 I A. ALVAREZ 2,903,057

BLIND HAVING RELATIVELY ADJUSTABLE SLATS Filed Jupe 16, 1958 3 Sheets-Sheet 2 INVENTOR. ALFONS O ALVAREZ 2 A TZORNEY Sept. 8, 1959 A. ALVAREZ 2,903,057

BLIND HAVING RELATIVELY ADJUSTABLE SLATS Filed June 15, 1958 I5 Sheets-Sheet 3 INVENTOR. ALFONSO ALVAREZ ATTORNEY United States Patent ice BLIND HAVING RELATIVELY ADJUSTABLE SLATS Alfonso Alvarez, Upper'Montclair, NJ.

Application June 16, 1958, Serial No. 742,215

14 Claims. (Cl. 160-133) The invention relates to improvements in blinds of the typecomprising a plurality of slats connectedin predetermined spaced relation by flexible, fold-able means and adapted to be rolled up and down within laterally spaced guide means.

. The primary object of the'invention is to. provide a blind-constructedto permita wide range of control of li'ghtand ventilation, the novel structure of the blind enabling full opening of any selected area, together with complete or partialclosure of the blind on either or both sidesof such fully opened area. More particularly, such control of light and ventilation is accomplished by means ofa novel slat-tilting member. In addition, either complete or partial closure throughout the entire length of the blind. is permitted, and complete or partial closure of an upper area of the blind, with the area beneath completely open, may be obtained.

Another object of the invention is to provide novel and simplified connecting means for the slats andthe flexible, foldable tapes upon which the slats are mounted.

These, and other objects and advantages of the invention will be brought out by the following description, taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings illustrating a preferred embodiment of the invention, in which:

Fig. 1 is an elevational view, as viewed from the interio-r, of a slatted blind in accordance with one form of the invention installed within a window opening;

Fig. 2 is a vertical sectional view taken approximately in the plane of the line 22 of Fig. 1;

Fig. 3 is an enlarged, fragmentary, vertical sectional View showing the manner of cooperation of the slattilting member with a plurality or group of slats to change their normally vertical position to horizontally extending and fully open position;

Fig. 4 isa transverse horizontal sectional view taken approximately in the plane of line 4-4 of Fig. 3;

Fig. 5 is a fragmentary front elevational view, partly broken away and in cross-section, showing the slidetiltingme'mber in relation to the guide means for the slats;

' Fig. 6 is a perspective view of a member formed for connection to a flexible, foldable tape;

Fig. 7 is a perspective view showing a plurality of connectors, as shown in Fig. 6, mounted in spaced relationship on a flexible tape;

Fig. 8 is a perspective view of the end of a slat formed for assembly with the connector-tape assembly shown in Fig. 7;

Fig. 9 is a perspective view illustrating the manner of assembling the slat of Fig. 8 with the tape mounted connector of Fig. 7, and the completion of the assembly;

Fig. 10 illustrates the manner in which the connection of the slats with the tapes permits a slat to be tilted with respect to an adjoining slat; and

11 is a view similar to Fig. 3 showing another form of rnounting of the slat-tilting member.

Patented Sept. 8, 1959 nated A, comprises a plurality of slats 18, and maybe mounted within a window or frame opening B behind the usual glass or sashes C. The slats, which are connected in predetermined, spaced relation by flexible, foldable means, are slidably mounted for up and down movement in elongated, slat guide means D. A slat-tilting member E, formed to span a plurality of slats, is slidably mounted for movement longitudinally of the slat guide means D to any position adjacent a selected group of slats. The slat-tilting member is further mounted'for movement in a plane generally transversely of the length of the slat guide means to enable engagement of the member with a group of slats and to rotate or tilt them out of their normal vertically extending position to a horizontal position for the full transmission of light.

In greater detail, the frame opening B is defined by a sill 20, a top piece 22 and side jambs 24. The elongated slat guide means D is preferably of the form of an open-sided channel secured to'each of the jambs 24 on the interior side of the sashes C. As shown in: Fig. 4, the guide channel has a base 26 and two arms 28 and 29 extending therefrom, with the latter preferably of greater height for a purpose to be subsequently described.

The slats 18 may be formed of any suitable material, but preferably they are made of hard, resilient material such as aluminum, or a plastic material which can be molded, extruded or otherwise suitably shaped. By varying the material, size and shape of the slats, the blind may be adapted to fulfill any one or more of its light controlling or ventilating functions. As shown, the slats 18 are channel-shaped or of inverted V-shape, having an arcuately curved base portion 30 and depending; preferably diverging, flanges 32. It is also desirable that the space between the free edges of the flanges 32 be somewhat greater than the width of the base portion 30 so that the flanges of one slat may resiliently embrace and receive between them the base portion of the next lower slat. The slats are connected in a manner to per mit them to be positioned in embracing or nesting engagement with each other, or to be moved substantial distances apart, or to be disposed in angular or tilted relation with respect to adjoining slats.

In the preferred form of the invention, and as shown in Figs. 6 through 10, the slats are connected to flexible, foldable tapes 34 in a novel and improved manner. The tape may be of any desired woven fabric, or plastic material of suitable flexibility and strength. The connection of the slats 18 with the tapes 34 is accomplished by mounting connector tubes 36, each having a length slightly greater than the 'width of the tape, ontothe-tape in predetermined, spaced relationship. As shown in Fig.

6, the connector tube is provided at diametrically opllefe ringto Figs. 1 and 2, the blind, generally desigposite sides. thereof 'with longitudinally extending slots 38, which are somewhat shorter than the length of the tube and slightly longer than the width of the tape. The connector tubes are formed of any suitable material, such as metal or plastic tubing. The tape is passed through the slots, and the tubes are secured against longitudinal movement of the tape in any suitable manner; As shown, spaced notches 39 may be provided to enable the intermediate portions 41 to be deformed or crimped into tight engagement with-the tape.

As shown in Fig. 8, the slats 18 are each. provided at their ends with a laterally projecting tubular portion. 40

As shown in Fig. 9, with the tube connectors 36 secured to a tape in desired predetermined, spaced relation, the tubular portion 40 of a slat is slipped over a connector with the tape extending through the slots 42. When the slats are thus assembled with the tapes, and the slats are slidably mounted at opposite sides in the laterally spaced guide channels D, the slats are retained for raising or lowering in a substantially fixed vertical plane. The flexible, foldable tape connections between slats permitsthe nesting of the slats for complete closure, as well as allowing tilting of a slat about its longitudinal axis and with respect to an adjacent slat, as shown in Fig. 10.

If desired, the slats may be flexibly and foldably connected by flexible ball chains in the manner more particularly described in my pending application, Serial Number 651,666, filed April 9, 1957.

Referring to Figs. 1 and 2, a roller 46 is provided upon which the blind A may be rolled, and from which the blind may be unrolled to move the slats upwardly and downwardly, respectively, across the window opening B. The roller has a shaft 48 whichis journalled in hearings on the end walls of a casing 50 provided at the top of the frame opening. Slat confining disks or flanges 51 are mounted on the shaft 48 at opposite ends of the roller 46. The upper end of the blind is fast secured to the roller, so that as the roller is rotated in the direction of the arrow, as shown in Fig. 2, the blindwill be pulled upwardly and rolled onto the roller. Preferably, the upper ends of the slat guide channels D are provided with funnelshaped mouths 52 to permit free passage of the slats onto and 01f the roller. Any suitable means may be provided for rotating the roller 46. As shown, 'a cable or cord 54 has one end wrapped around the shaft 48, and its other end passed through an opening 56 in the window frame, and then downward to a winding reel 58 of any suitable type having a hand crank 60. As disk 61 is secured to the shaft in spaced relation with respect to a disk 51 to.

confine the cable 54 as it is wound onto the shaft. Desirably the reel 58 will have a pawl and ratchet mechanism for holding the blind in selected adjusted-positions.

From the foregoing, it will be readily understood that by unrolling the slats 18 from the roller 46, and permitting the leading slat to rest upon the window sill 20, further unrolling of the slats will result in the slats being disposed in edgewise abutting and nesting relation, so that those slats so nested completely close off the passage of light. Depending on the degree that the slats are unrolled, either a complete closure may be obtained, or a partial closure, with the lower slats nested and the slats thereabove spaced apart the amount when the tapes 34 are fully extended, may be obtained. Also, the lowermost slat may touch the sill or be located anywhere within the height of the window opening, with the tapes fully extended, whereupon the amount of light passing through the spaced slats is related to the predetermined spacing between slats. Any area below the lowermost slat, when above the sill, is, of course, completely open. 7

In order to tilt any desired group of slats to fully open position, the slat-tilting member or members E are moved to a position opposite the desired area of the blind. As best shown in Figs. 3, 4 and 5, a track 64, preferably in the form of a C-shaped channel,is provided adjacent the slat guide means D and extends parallel thereto. The track 64 may be secured to the longer arm 29 of the slat guide channel. A mating or cooperating slide member 66 is disposed within the track, such member preferably having a squat T cross-section. The slide member is movable up and down within the track, and retains its position therein unless a component of force is applied to overcome the frictional fit between the slide member and the sides of the channel-shaped track. A portion 68 of the slide member extends outwardly from between the flanges or gib portions 70 of the channel-shaped track, and. is fastended to a plate 72 by suitable means such as screws 74. A transversely extending bracket 76 is secured, as by welding, to the upper edge of the plate 72 and provides a support for connection to the slat-tilting member E by a pivot pin 78. The pivotal connection is relatively tight so that the slat-tilting member will retain its position until a force is applied to move it about the pivot pin. The slat-tilting member comprises a plate which is preferably generally trapezoidal in shape, with the narrow side at the top pivotally connected to the slide member as aforesaid.

As best shown in Fig. 3, the slat-tilting member E is provided at its leading edge 80 with a plurality of longitudinally spaced, transversely extending cut-outs 82, the cut-outs being spaced apart a distance substantially equal to the spacing of the slats on the'tapes when the tapes are fully extended and the slats are in vertically spaced relation. The cut-outs are each formed at their lower forward edges with a lead-in radius 84, with the base 86 of the cut-out having a mating radius for the base 30 of a slat. For the purpose of symmetry and for preferred operation; and as shown in Fig. 1, a pair of slide-tilting members is used, one on each side of the blind, with a cross-bar 86 between and connecting them at their lower ends.

With the slat-tilting members E in the position as shown in the dot-dash lines of Fig. 3, the cross-bar 86 is grasped, and a force is applied in an upward or downward direction to move the slat-tilting members to desired position adjacent a group of slats. The cross-bar is then moved in a plane substantially transversely of the length of the slat guide means D, or in the direction of the arrow, as shown in Fig. 3, whereupon the slat-tilting members are pivoted about the axis provided by the pivot pins 78 to cause the slats 18 to enter the cut-outs 82. The slats are thereby tilted about their connections to the tapes to horizontally extending or open position. Cooperating stop means 87, 87 are provided to limit the forward movement of the slat-tilting members.

From the foregoing it will be apparent that the slats may be unrolled from the roller 46 to permit the leading slat to rest upon the window sill 20, and then further unrolled, so that a desired segment of the window openingmay be completely closed by the nesting relationship of the slats. Above the fully closed portion, the slats may be in vertically spaced relation with the tapes unfolded. In any such upper area, the slide tilting members may be brought into engagement with a group of slats to tilt them to their horizontal, open position. In the area above the slat-tilting members, the slats may be in either vertically spaced relation to allow partial passage of light, or such area may be completely closed off by further unrolling the roller 46. A portion of the slide-tilting member, designated 88 in Fig. 3, serves as a stop. With a slat engaging the portion 88, further unrolling of the roller 46 causes the slats above the slide-tilting member to assume the nested relation which completely closes the upperarea of the blind. Of course, with the lowermost slat of the blind touching the sill 20, and with the slats spaced apart in accordance with their predetermined spaced relationship when the tapes are unfolded, the area below the slats which are tilted to horizontal position by the slide-tilting members provides a partial opening, with the area above the slide-tilting members either thus partially open, or completely closed.

It will be further apparent that the slide-tilting member may, if desired, also serve as a stop only. With the slattilting member in the position shown in solid linm in Fig 3, and located anywhere above the lowermost edge of the window opening, the blind may be unrolled so that the lowermost slat thereof engages the portion 88. Further unrolling of the blind will cause the slats to embrace each,

otherin nesting relation above the portion 88, and the area of the window opening below this point may be completely open.

Another form of slat-tilting member, designated E, and manner of mounting is shown in Fig. 11. Such form of tilting membeflwhich also furnishes the stop function as previously described, is related to the slat guide nieans D, or the adjacent track, to permit up and down movement lengthwise thereof, as previously described. In accordance with this form of the invention, however, the movement of the slat-tiltingmember in a transverse plane is a straight, linear motion, instead of an arcuate, transverse motion as previously described.

The slide-tilting member E is connected to a slide member cooperating with an elongated track by an intermediate bracket similar to the bracket 76, as previously described. Instead of one such bracket, however, a pair of longitudinally spaced brackets are connected to the 'slide member, and each bracket is provided with a laterally extending fixed pin, the pins 90 and 90'. The slattilting member is provided with elongated, transversely extending slots 92, 9 2" through which extend pins 90 and 90, respectively. A spring 94, concavely shaped and mounted on studs 95, as shown, may be provided adjacent each elongated slot for engagement with each of the pins to resiliently retain the slat-tilting member in either disengaged or engaged position. Thus, the slattilting member is prevented from ratcheting along the slats when the member is being moved longitudinally to desired position, and prior to tilting a group of slats. A cross-bar 96 may be provided between a pair of the members B, one on each side of the edges of the blind. The cross-bar is preferably located between the upper and lower ends of the slat-tilting members, and in horizontal alignment with a cut-out so that the presence of the cross-bar does not lessen the passage of light. After positioning the slat-tilting members E at the desired area of the window opening, and with the slats positioned for tilting, a push upon the cross-bar from the dot-dash position shown in Fig. 11 to the solid line position results in the slats of the group being tilted to horizontal position.

While the now preferred embodiment of the invention has been shown and described for the purpose of illustrating the principles of the invention, it will be understood by those skilled in the art that changes in the details of construction of the blind and the operating mechanism therefor, as well as installation thereof in openings of various types of structures may be made within the spirit and scope of the invention.

I claim:

1. A blind comprising a plurality of slats connected in predetermined spaced relation by flexible, foldable means, elongated slat guide means in which said slats are slidably mounted, a slat-tilting member spanning a group of slats, an elongated track adjacent and extending parallel to said slat guide means, and a slide member cooperating with said track, the slat-tilting member being connected to the slide member so that the slat-tilting member may be moved longitudinally of said slat guide means to a selected position adjacent a group of slats, and in a plane substantially transversely of the length of said slat guide means for engagement with a group of slats.

2. A blind as set forth in claim 1, wherein one end of the slat-tilting member is pivotally connected to the slide member.

3. A blind as set forth in claim 1, wherein the slattilting member is connected to the slide member by a pair of longitudinally spaced pins journalled in elongated, transversely extending slots to allow the movement of the slat-tilting member in the transverse plane.

4. A blind as set forth in claim 1, wherein the slattilting member is provided at its leading edge with longitudinally spaced cut-outs, each formed to engage a slat and tilt it from vertically extending to horizontal position.

5. A blind as set forth in claim 1, wherein the slat-tilting member is formed to provide a stop for the slats above the member.

6. A blind comprising a plurality of slats connected in predetermined spaced relation by flexible, foldable means, a pair of longitudinally extending, laterally spaced 6 slat guide means in which the ends of said slats are slid-r ably mounted, a pair of laterally spaced slat-tiltingmemhers spanning a'group of slats, a cross-bar between, the slat-tilting members, an elongatedtrack adjacent and extending parallel to each of said slat guide means, and a slide member cooperating with each track, the slat-tilting members being connected to the slide members so that a moving force applied to the cross-bar in a direction generally parallel to the length of said slat guide means permits positioning of the slat-tilting members adjacent a selected group of slats, the connection of the slat-tilting members and the slide members. permitting movement of the slat-tilting members in a plane substantially transversely of the length of said slat guide means for engagement with a group of slats.

7. A blind as set forth in claim 6, wherein one end of each slat-tilting member is pivotally connected to its cooperating slide member.

8. A blind as set forth in claim 6 wherein each slattilting member is connected to its cooperating slide member by a pair of longitudinally spaced pins journalled in elongated, transversely extending slots to allow the movement of the slat-tilting members in the transverse plane.

9. A blind as set forth in claim 6, wherein the slattilting members are each provided at their leading edges with longitudinally spaced cut-outs each formed to engage a slat and tilt it from vertically extending to horizontal position.

10. A blind as set forth in claim 6, wherein the slattilting members are each formed to provide a stop for the slats above the member.

11. A blind comprising a plurality of slats, said slats each having tubular portions at their ends which are slotted at diametrically opposite sides, a pair of flexible, foldable tapes, a plurality of tubular connectors secured to said tapes in predetermined spaced relation, said connectors being disposed within said tubular portions of the slats with the tapes extending through the slots thereof, elongated slat guide means in which said tubular portions of the slats are slidably mounted, and a slat-tilting member spanning a group of slats slidably mounted for movement longitudinally of said guide means to a selected position adjacent a group of slats, said member being further mounted for movement in a plane substantially transversely of the length of said slat guide means for engagement with a group of slats.

12. A blind comprising a plurality of slats, said slats each having tubular portions at their ends which are slotted at diametrically opposite sides, a pair of flexible, foldable tapes, a plurality of tubular connectors. each having slots at diametrically opposite sides thereof, said tubular connectors. being secured to said tapes in predetermined spaced relation With the tapes extending through the slots thereof, said connectors being disposed within said tubular portions of the slats with the tapes extending through the slots thereof, elongated slat guide means in which said tubular portions of the slats are slidably mounted, and a slat-tilting member spanning a group of slats slidably mounted for movement longitudinally of said guide means to a selected position adjacent a group of slats, said member being further mounted for movement in a plane substantially transversely of the length of said slat guide means for engagement with a group of s ats.

13. A blind comprising a plurality of slats, said slats each having tubular portions at their ends which are slotted at diametrically opposite sides, a pair of flexible, foldable tapes, and a plurality of tubular connectors, said tubular connectors being secured to said tapes in predetermined spaced relation, said connectors being disposed within said tubular portions of the slats with the tapes extending through the slots thereof.

14. A blind comprising a plurality of slats, said slats each having tubular portions at their ends which are slotted at diametrically opposite sides, a pair of flexible,

7 8 foldable tapes, and a plurality of tubular connectors each References Cited in the file of this patent having slots at diametrically opposite sides thereof, said UNITED STATES PATENTS tubular connectors being secured to said tapes in pIe-t determined spaced relation with the tapes extending 1,708,636 Shook P 9, 1929 through the slots thereof, said connectors being disposed 5 2,755,85 MCIHtir July 24, 1956 within said tubular portions of the slats with the tapes extending through the slots thereof. 

